This invention relates generally to rotary machines and more specifically to internal and external rotary combustion engines, fluid compressors, vacuum pumps, and drive turbines for expandable gases or pressurized fluid and water.
As the human race has evolved throughout the centuries, we, as a people, have used our minds to develop machines and tools to help us achieve higher evolutionary standards. Technological advances include the invention and discovery of the lever and the wheel in early times to more sophisticated communication and computational devices that we now enjoy in our daily lives. Nearly all aspects of technology, from the very rudimentary to the very complex, have made great advances that have made the daily lives of the people and animals on this planet much easier. However, there is one invention that has been with us for a long time that has received little technological advancement despite its extremely important use in our daily lives.
A typical four-cycle internal combustion reciprocating engine powers nearly all vehicles on the face of the planet. Likewise, the same engine is employed to power boats, generators, compressors, pumps, and machines of all type and design. However, despite its widespread use, the internal combustion, or Otto cycle, engine or, in certain instances, a diesel cycle engine, has received very little technological advancement. The changes made to the engine have left the basic thermal cycle of the engine untouched.
The reciprocating motion of common internal combustion engines, Otto and diesel cycle, is an inefficient method of producing rotary power. A typical four-cycle engine requires four reciprocating motions for each unit of power it delivers. Initially, the engine has an intake and compression stroke, followed by combustion, expansion, and exhaust strokes. The reciprocating motion of the four-cylinder engine requires four inertial changes of the rotating mass of the pistons, connecting rods, and assemblyxe2x80x94each change in inertia yielding a power loss to the system. Likewise, each complete cycle of the internal combustion engine requires four inertial changes for the associated valves, springs, lifters, rocker arms, and push rods, yielding additional total loss of the engine.
The mechanical complexity of the standard internal combustion engine adds to the design""s overall inefficiency. A single cylinder four-cycle engine requires many moving parts, including a piston, piston pin, connecting rod, crank shaft, a plurality of lifters, push rods, rocker arms, valves, valve springs, gears, a timing chain, and a fly wheel. Each one of these parts increases the probability of engine failure due to fatigue or wear. Likewise, this large number of parts increases the amount of inertial mass that must change four times per cycle, reducing power produced by the system. Each moving part is subject to frictional loss between each relative part, adding to power loss. Further, it is expensive to manufacture and maintain equipment requiring such a large number of moving parts.
A typical four-cycle engine is a low torque, high r.p.m. machine. Because the relatively short throw of the crank arm yields a very low tortional moment, the Otto cycle engine requires a higher r.p.m. to achieve higher power ratings. More specifically, both Otto and diesel cycle engines achieve their highest internal pressure at approximately the lowest tortional moment in the piston cycle, top dead center. Thus, the engine cycle does not mate the engine""s greatest potential to do workxe2x80x94highest internal pressurexe2x80x94with the engine""s best ability to exploit that potential or convert it to power. Further, the torque moment is not constant. Rather, the torque moment is at approximately zero at top dead center, reaches its highest value at mid-stroke, and returns to zero at bottom dead center. By design, the highest internal pressure occurs when the piston is at approximately full stroke or extension. Therefore, a majority of the initial force generated during combustion is transmitted axially down the piston and connecting rod and is not transferred to rotational power. Only subsequently, as the tortional moment enlarges, is a majority of the expansive force converted into rotational power. The resulting structural requirements limit piston assembly design, increasing mass and limiting material choice. Further, transmissions are necessary to amplify the relatively low torque generated by the reciprocating motion, thus adding weight, cost, complexity and additional power requirements to the overall system.
The compression, and thus heating, of the original unit volume of combustion products leads to further power loss. Gas expansion is dependent upon the temperature of the gas prior to ignitionxe2x80x94with all other variables held constant, a gas with a cooler ignition temperature will expand more than the same gas at a hotter ignition temperature, given the space to do so. Therefore, the heating of the fuel/air mixture by compression prior to ignition reduces the amount of expansion, and thus work, attainable during the subsequent expansion stroke. Likewise, the reciprocating design limits the combustion product""s ability to do useful work because the expansion volume is not equal to the compression volumexe2x80x94combustion heats the gas, thus increasing the expansion volume beyond the initial volume. Thus, relatively high-pressure combustion gases are exhausted without performing any useful work.
The overall design of Otto, diesel, and other rotary engines is limited by cross-leakage at high pressure. More specifically, cross leaking is internal pressure loss due to overflow from the high-pressure side to the low-pressure side of the system while the pistons move throughout their stroke. Leakage generally occurs around the piston and the cylinder walls, exhaust and inlet ports, and between the cylinder head and the block. The excessive number of seals and connecting parts in other internal combustion engines creates cross-leakage liability. Therefore, the operating internal pressure range of the engines is greatly reduced.
Yet another limitation of current rotary engine technology is the internal combustion design of the engines. More specifically, current rotary engines are operable only as internal combustion engines. The current designs fail to allow for use as external combustion or external detonation cycle engines. Thus, the current state of rotary engine technology requires a considerably larger volume for expansion of the gases than is required with an external aspects of this invention.
A further limitation of current engine technology is a lack of design diversity. The extent of diversity for typical internal engines is limited by a need to drive a common crankshaft from a plurality of reciprocating motions. The engine design has developed little from standard in-line and v-type engine configurations. Even other rotary engine designs are singular in their rotary component arrangements. Alternative piston arrangements, such as cross rotation, have not been explored. This limited design diversity prevents possible space-saving designs from being developed.
Another design limitation of the internal combustion engine is the singularity of its use. The internal combustion engine is operable only as an internal combustion engine. It is a power source converting chemical energy into mechanical energy, the mechanical energy being in the form of a rotating shaft. The internal combustion engine itself has no ability to function with detonation chambers other than the internal combustion chamber, such as, for example, a shaped charge or other detonation cycle device, some of which provide external combustion. Furthermore, the internal combustion engine itself is incapable of functioning as an air compressor, a vacuum pump, an external combustion engine, water pump, a drive turbine for expandable gas, or a drive turbine.
The present invention comprises a rotary machine capable of functioning as an internal or external rotary combustion engine, shaped charge or detonation charge rotary engine, fluid compressor, vacuum pump, or drive turbine for expandable gases or pressurized fluid and water. In accordance with some aspects of the invention, the rotary machine employs a generally toroidal-shaped housing that is cylindrical in shape at its perimeter. Disposed substantially within the toroidal housing and integrally connected to the housing is a plurality of rotary components, including an expansion ring having an expansion ring projection that cooperates with a sealing cylinder having a recess that mechanically mates with the expansion ring projection.
In accordance with other aspects of the invention, the invention includes intake and exhaust ports that, depending upon the function the rotary machine is performing, allow various gases, fuels, or fluids to enter or exit a chamber defined within the rotary machine.
In accordance with further aspects of the invention, when functioning as an internal combustion machine, combustion products entering the intake port are not compressed by the combustion chamber prior to ignition.
In accordance with other aspects of the invention, in some embodiments the expansion ratio is greater than the compression volume.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, the exhaust gases are exhausted at any desirable exhaust pressure, including ambient pressure.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, the toroidal housing prevents pressure loss due to cross leaking.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, the torque moment is constant throughout the cycle, but the torque value decreases with decreasing pressure.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, the constant torque moment allows the rotary machine to operate at relatively low r.p.m. while achieving relatively high power output.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, the highest torque moment coincides with the highest compression or internal pressure.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, the torque value and r.p.m. are independent variables that may be manipulated to achieve a desired power output.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, the compression ratio is independent and may be adjusted to achieve a desired output.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, the relative motion of the piston and output shafts is adjustable to any configuration.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, ignition timing is variable to achieve a desirable combustion pressure.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, a variety of ignition devices are employable with the rotary machine, for example, transformer discharge systems, voltage devices, spark plugs, photoelectric cell, piezoelectric and plasma arc devices.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, the rotary machine produces bi-directional rotational power that may be employed separately or conjunctively.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, a plurality of rotary machines may be selectively employed to achieve a desired power output.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, a plurality of rotary machines may be selectively employed to achieve a desired vacuum or compression value.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, a new thermal cycle is developed having an intake, expansion and exhaust stroke, without compression of the combustion products within the combustion chamber.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, in some embodiments combustion products are compressed prior to combustion.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, the combustion and expansion chambers are shaped to allow efficient expansion of combustion products with minimal inertial loss.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, piston size and torque moment are variable to achieve desired r.p.m. and power requirements.